Abbott Laboratories management check
ABT · Health Care · Health Care Equipment · CEO Robert B. Ford
Filings as of
5 good · 2 to watch · 0 flagged, across the seven questions below.
- Watch
Have owners done well?
Trailed its chosen peers$100 invested at the start of fiscal 2021 grew to $125, against $148 for the peer group the company picked itself.
- Good
Does pay follow performance?
Pay rose and fell with returnsOver 5 years, the CEO's pay actually paid (equity valued at the share price) had a correlation of 0.74 with shareholder return. 1 means pay moved in step; below 0, the opposite way.
- Good
What does the CEO cost owners?
0.3% of net income$24.2m of reported pay in fiscal 2025, against $8.7bn of net income.
- Watch
Do they own the stock?
CEO stake ≈ 3.4 years of payThe CEO holds 705,293 shares, directly or through trusts (unvested awards not counted): about 3.4 years of pay. Both: 2 buyers ($1.1m) and 3 sellers ($46.9m) in six months.
- Good
Are owners being diluted?
Share count shrinkingDiluted shares changed -0.0% a year over the last three fiscal years. Stock-based pay was 1.5% of revenue in the latest year.
- Good
Is leadership stable?
5 leadership filings in 3 yearsCEO in the pay table: Robert B. Ford. 5 filings under 8-K item 5.02 (officers or directors leaving or joining, or new pay arrangements) in the last 3 years.
- Good
Are the books clean?
No red flags on fileNo restatements, auditor changes or late filings since 2021.
Against the S&P 500
Each check's score (0–100) and how it compares: the share of ranked S&P 500 companies it matches or beats, and the median in Health Care.
| Check | Score | At or above | Sector median |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owner returns | 31 | 26 | |
| Pay for performance | 87 | 85 | |
| CEO cost | 96 | 44 | |
| Skin in the game | 61 | 46 | |
| Dilution | 50 | 68 | |
| Stable leadership | 100 | 70 | |
| Clean books | 100 | 100 |
Closest peers
Others in Health Care Equipment, by management score. Abbott Laboratories is 11th of 60 in its sector.
- 115ABTAbbott Laboratories75
- 149SYKStryker Corporation72
- 156ISRGIntuitive Surgical72
- 188IDXXIdexx Laboratories69
- 192BSXBoston Scientific69
- 246RVTYRevvity64
- 256GEHCGE HealthCare64
- 294RMDResMed62
- 321STESteris60
- 353BDXBecton Dickinson58
Pay versus performance
From the proxy statement filed March 13, 2026. "Actually paid" values stock awards at the share price, so it rises and falls with the stock.
| Fiscal year | CEO | CEO pay | Actually paid | Other executives (avg) | $100 became | Peers | Net income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Robert B. Ford | $24.2m | $26.8m | $7.5m | $125 | $148 | $8.7bn |
| 2024 | Robert B. Ford | $22.8m | $24.8m | $7.4m | $142 | $147 | $8.1bn |
| 2023 | Robert B. Ford | $23.3m | $20.5m | $6.2m | $136 | $143 | $5.7bn |
| 2022 | Robert B. Ford | $21.7m | $8.0m | $7.4m | $133 | $140 | $6.9bn |
| 2021 | Robert B. Ford | $24.9m | $43.3m | $9.3m | $167 | $143 | $7.1bn |
The board says pay is tied most to Adjusted Diluted EPS. Its other key measures: •Sales, •Gross Margin, •Diluted EPS, •Total Shareholder Return, •Return on Assets, •Return on Equity, •Free Cash Flow, •Division Margin.
Insiders and the CEO's stake
Robert B Ford (CHAIRMAN AND CEO) held 705,293 shares directly after their latest Form 4 on Aug 25, 2026, roughly $81.9m at that filing's price.
Both: 2 buyers ($1.1m) and 3 sellers ($46.9m) in six months.
- BoughtDaniel J StarksDirector$927kApr 27, 2026
- BoughtJohn G StrattonDirector$174kMay 7, 2026
- SoldRobert B FordCHAIRMAN AND CEO$46.2mAug 25, 2026
- SoldLouis H. MorroneEXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT$643kAug 11, 2026
Leadership and governance on file
- Apr 27, 2026Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 12, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 1, 2025Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Nov 15, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- May 1, 2024Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Jun 12, 2023Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Oct 21, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Sep 15, 2022Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 13, 2021Leadership change8-K 5.02
- Dec 10, 2021Leadership change8-K 5.02
Latest shareholder vote results: Apr 27, 2026, including the say-on-pay vote.
Where the money went
Over 2021–2025: $27.5bn returned to owners in buybacks and dividends, 69% of net income, and $3.3bn of pay in stock.
| Fiscal year | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $43.1bn | $43.7bn | $40.1bn | $42.0bn | $44.3bn |
| Net income | $7.1bn | $6.9bn | $5.7bn | $13.4bn | $6.5bn |
| Stock-based pay | $640.0m | $685.0m | $644.0m | $673.0m | $664.0m |
| Buybacks | $2.3bn | $3.8bn | $1.2bn | $1.3bn | $893.0m |
| Dividends | $3.2bn | $3.3bn | $3.6bn | $3.8bn | $4.1bn |
| Diluted shares | 1789m | 1764m | 1749m | 1748m | 1748m |
Educational only, not investment advice. Figures are as filed with the SEC: pay from the proxy's pay-versus-performance table, capital allocation from 10-K XBRL data, insider trades from Form 4s over the last six months, events from the last 5 years of filings. The peer group is the one the company chose. See the method.